


You'd better watch out

by BrilliantlyHorrid



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Coulson is in a funk, Daisy is a flawless heroine, F/M, Orphanage, Santa and her lovely Elf assistant, Skoulson Christmas Fest, awkward costume fittings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-30
Updated: 2015-11-30
Packaged: 2018-05-04 03:39:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5319032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrilliantlyHorrid/pseuds/BrilliantlyHorrid
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Phil is in a funk, and Daisy keeps disappearing on the weekends. So he does a little investigating. </p><p>Written for the Impromptu Skoulson Holiday Fic Fest or whatever we're calling it.<br/>I sort of didn't follow a prompt for this one buuuuut maybe "Our flawless orphans celebrating the holidays when they are on the road/on a mission/undercover?" Again? Woops.</p>
            </blockquote>





	You'd better watch out

**Author's Note:**

> More Christmas fluff! If this next episode doesn't completely destroy me I'll try to tackle more of the actual prompts for the holidays. Oh god, what are they going to do to us?

“Mack, have you seen Daisy?” Coulson asked, after dismissing the small group of agents from his office. It was getting close to Christmas, so they were running on bare bones staff, essentially hoping nothing went too awry.

 _‘Because supervillains are usually so considerate during the holidays,’_ Hunter had muttered, and while Coulson could have done without the attitude, he had to admit the man had a point.

 _Which is why it might be helpful to know where my resident superhero is._ She hadn’t been necessary in the last meeting, which mostly involved the equipment repairs set to be finished by the end of the year, but Phil realized he hadn’t seen Daisy all day.

In fact, this was the second weekend in a row she was nowhere to be seen.

“Is it urgent?” Mack asked, and Coulson raised an eyebrow.

“Have you seen her, Agent Mackenzie?” Mack wasn’t insubordinate, but he could be...difficult. Coulson couldn’t blame him for not entirely trusting his judgement, especially considering recent events (or, well, events since he had joined up,) but the questioning could get a little frustrating.

Taking the hint, Mack crossed his arms over the folder he was holding and sighed. “I believe she’s out, Sir,” he said. “On _personal_ business.”

Phil frowned. “Is that where she’s been going?” He asked, and could see Mack glancing at the door, like Daisy was going to catch him spilling her secrets.

“Yes, Sir,” he said, choosing his words carefully. “It’s nothing SHIELD related, or dealing with Inhumans,” he reassured him, and Phil believed him. Mack may have been aloof, but he didn’t play around.

“She didn’t tell me,” Coulson said quietly, half to himself. Daisy was yet another person who was right to be wary of him these days, but considering their relative closeness, he didn’t expect her to keep things from him. _Personal things._

Trying not to dwell on the _last_ time Mack had kept Daisy’s secrets for her, Phil attempted to let it go. Let her have her privacy. He trusted her, she was a smart woman, she wouldn’t willingly put herself into danger and not tell him--

_Except…_

She would absolutely do that.

“Am I dismissed, Sir?” Mack asked, watching him skeptically. Coulson nodded briskly, waving him away. Reaching the doorway, Mack paused. “She’s not doing anything dangerous,” he said, looking a little conflicted as he said it. “To my knowledge.”

“Which is… extensive, would you say?” Coulson asked, perfectly aware how transparent he could be when it came to Daisy.

“If I believed she was in any trouble, I would tell you,” was Mack’s response, and Coulson nodded.

“You’re dismissed.”

“Director,” Mack called from the door. He seemed to struggle for words then, which wasn’t something the man did often. “It’s my personal opinion that Daisy needs this time to herself,” he said, shrugging. Coulson nodded, and Mack sent him one last significant look before he left.

_‘Don’t snoop,’ he means._

Phil was mildly offended. Did Mack think he was that paranoid?

***

He was exactly _that_ paranoid.

Phil would never want to betray Daisy’s trust, or make her feel like she was being monitored. _But_ she also had a habit of endangering herself and not telling others to spare them the trouble, so sue him for being a little concerned.

Mack’s intel had been slightly incorrect, it turned out, be it purposeful or not. Daisy was still on the base, but she was definitely on her way out. From his vantage point she didn’t seem to be in distress, if just a bit tired. Signing out one of the SHIELD SUVs on the console in the garage, she chatted lightly with Joey as he worked on a different car. By her feet was a large duffel bag, which appeared to be filled to the maximum capacity. Lifting it onto her shoulders she grabbed a set of keys from the hook and made her way to one of the cars.

Once she had driven out of the garage, Phil casually walked over to the console, greeting Joey as he scanned the screen.

“Hi Director,” Joey called over, standing up and wiping his hands on his pants. “You going out too?” Realizing he had to make a choice quickly, Phil went with what he knew was probably the wrong one.

“Yes.”

 

Fully aware he was probably making a mistake, Phil trailed behind Daisy’s SUV in his own unmarked SHIELD vehicle. He decided against Lola for the obvious reasons, and also it was snowing and he didn’t want to waste time attaching the roof. It was both reassuring and worrisome that Daisy didn’t seem to be taking any evasive tactics, since it was easy enough for him to track her down on the road.

 _So she’s either not in mission mode, or she knows I’m following_ , he guessed, which made him feel uneasy. He was clearly violating her privacy at this point, wasn’t he? Why? Did he think this was going to somehow close the recent distance between them?

Phil had no idea, but he was fairly sure that it was useless to try to define his reasonings where Daisy was concerned. Because there wasn’t usually much _reason_ involved.

After about 45 minutes of travel, they reached the outskirts of the city, in what appeared to be a not-great neighborhood. Low income, he observed, some of the apartment buildings or homes seemed to be abandoned. It wasn’t terrible, but curious. _What is she doing here?_ Seeing her pull into a metered spot up ahead, Phil pulled into his own down the street where he could still see her SUV. Daisy didn’t appear for a while, and Phil was beginning to wonder if something was wrong (maybe Mack was calling her and giving her a warning,) when her door opened.

At first he almost jumped out of his car, since the person climbing out of the driver’s seat was _not_ Daisy.

But it _was_.

He let out a startled little laugh, which felt obscenely loud in the quiet of the car. Daisy was wearing a Santa suit, which looked stuffed and ridiculous on her tiny frame. Gone was the duffel, but she did hold a bag slung over her shoulder. Its contents looked flat and blocky, likely books. Watching as Daisy waddled across the street-- _How can she see with that beard?-_ \- Phil noticed the sign she passed heading to the front steps. Leaning in to read it, Phil made out the words “Little Wanderers.”

Feeling alternately elated and ashamed and amused and horribly touched as he saw Daisy knock on the door and get ushered in, Phil started his car.

***

“You know you I’m pretty sure spying gets you on the Naughty List,” Daisy said, leaning in Coulson’s doorway. His head shot up, and before he could put his “who, me?” face on, she could see the guilt. _Busted_.

“Did you enjoy your little road trip?” She asked, raising an eyebrow. Coulson said nothing. “Come on, I know it was you. You know you’re the ones who taught me how to spot a tail, right? Were you even trying?” She hadn’t been sure at first, but after spending as much time as she had in the garage with Joey and Mack recently ( _helping, not hiding,_ she told herself,) she recognized the purposefully nondescript car a few lengths behind her fairly quickly. Knowing it was SHIELD, and ruling out anyone she had spoken to prior to the trip and anyone away for the holidays, it became pretty clear who was following her.

At first she was gritting her teeth, annoyed. Did he not trust her at all? Why the sneakiness, and why was he _so bad at it_? Was he not even bothering to hide, sending some kind of message by clearly following her off the base?

“I didn’t mean to invade your privacy,” he responded, and Daisy snorted.

“So you _accidentally_ followed me on explicitly personal business?” Before coming to his office, she’d stopped off to see Mack once she arrived back. ‘ _Anyone looking for me while I was out?_ ’ She’d asked, and really she only needed the look Mack gave her to know that she was exactly correct. _‘I told him not to_ ,’ was all Mack said. A quick stop to her bunk and then here she was, tired and hungry and itchy ( _damn beard_ ,) looking at a very squirmy Director of SHIELD.

If she wasn’t already aware that Coulson was having...issues after recent events, this sure as hell proved it. She knew Coulson, even after everything, so she was sure the reason he followed her was something stupid, and far from nefarious. Probably thought she was going rogue or something, which, no. She had a responsibility, not just to SHIELD but to her team. She wasn’t going to run off any do anything stupid. _Unlike some people._

So this was how he showed he cared these days? Don’t stop by to chat at her room or the garage or anywhere outside his office or anything. Just watch from a distance, that wasn’t off-putting at all.

 _He means well,_ she reminded herself, looking at the sad sack in front of her. Okay, that was mean, but he just looked sort of deflated when he wasn’t in 'robot mode' and it was bumming her out. Daisy loved Coulson. Legit _loved_ him. But after Ward and the ATCU and HYDRA, and the whole hellish amalgamation of the three, he was kind of...mopey. And closed off. And annoyingly indirect.

“I shouldn’t have--” he began, but Daisy held up a hand.

“You know what this means, right? Now that you know my deep dark secret?”

That almost got a smile, but she could see something else in those baby blues. “ _Dark_? You read Christmas stories to orphans.”

“In a ridiculous costume,” she added, not super self-conscious about that aspect, but she would admit she was reluctant to exit that car knowing he was watching. And yes, as far as secrets go, it wasn’t too bad. She was happy with the decision, and enjoyed doing it, but she wasn’t looking for a pat on the back. Hence the intended secrecy.

“It’s sweet,” Phil said, then shook his head. “I don’t mean to-- that’s a wonderful thing to do, Daisy.”

Daisy tried to wave away his far too sincere praise. “It’s nothing. I mean, it’s not nothing. I know-- _hope_ it means something. It would have to me, I think.”

No, they did not get jolly Santas giving dramatic readings of holiday stories and lugging a bag of fruit snacks--the agreed upon treat--at St. Agnes. They got an extra long mass, followed by an extra long lecture about the virtues of not expecting anything. _That way you can’t get let down_ , she had learned over the years. Perhaps that was the one piece of wisdom she could have thanked them for. After all, it had gotten her through the rougher years. Not getting your hopes up was the best way to avoid getting them dashed. Then again, Daisy could never really turn off her inclination to hope, no matter how hard she tried. No matter how bad things got, or how lonely and cynical she was, it was always there.

So even if these kids thought she was Santa (or some well-intentioned weirdo in a fake beard) and had no idea she had been in their shoes, she still hoped she was giving them some sort of sign that things would turn out okay. That there were still good things in the world.

“I’m sure it means a lot,” Coulson told her, and she couldn’t deal with the way he was looking at her. Like she was this beacon of hope and goodness and he was just sitting there trying not to mess it up.

“I’m glad you feel that way,” she said, sauntering over to his desk. She could see the confusion grow on his face, more so as she pulled the garment bag from behind her back. “Because your penance for following me will benefit from your enthusiasm. And cooperation.” She smiled, swearing she could hear him gulp down his fear.

 _It's not a big deal_ , she thought. _It's just a costume._

“I think you’ll have a good time,” she said brightly, but could see that her words were not reassuring in the least.

***

“Come on, Phil,” Daisy called through the door to his bunk. “We need to know if the costume is going to be okay for tomorrow.”

They didn’t _really_ ; it was a generic adult male sized costume, and Coulson was nothing if not the generic adult male, so she didn’t think it would be a problem. Plus, she planned ahead, so they would be fine if this one didn’t work out. But it was difficult to tell whether or not it would work out, since Coulson was apparently feeling shy.

“This is not happening,” he responded, and through the door she couldn’t tell if he was refusing to do it or denying the reality of the situation.

“Oh yes it is,” she said in a sing-song voice. It was lucky (okay, probably not luck) that his bunk was so far from the others, since even with their sparse staff they would probably raise a few questions right then. “Come on, there’s no way you can look weirder than me. You saw the belly, Phil.”

“I don’t understand why I can’t be Santa,” he practically whined. Again.

“I told you, I have dibs on the fat man. I’m not being relegated to lowly elf just because the boss is getting in on the action.”

“ _Lowly elf_ ,” she heard him mutter, and a grin spread across her face.

“Look, the sooner you come out, the sooner we are through with thi--”

The door opened.

“Ohohohohh my _god_ ,” Daisy sputtered, immediately cracking up. She put a hand over her mouth, but the damage was done.

“This isn’t happening,” Phil repeated, fiddling with the elf hat in his hands.

“Green velvet is a good look for you, Sir,” Daisy said, trying to hold back a laugh. _He’s even wearing the shoes_ , she noted, which brought on another round of giggles.

“Yeah, yeah,” he muttered, and Daisy could see a blush on his face. She wasn’t trying to humiliate him, and she hoped Coulson at least had the good sense to know that.

She suspected he did, considering the fact that he had even bothered to put the costume on. Mopey or no, Phil Coulson had a sense of humor about himself.

Focusing on the hat in his hands, Daisy narrowed her eyes, swallowing her glee.

“Put it on,” she said seriously, and saw Coulson look at her in surprise for a second, before staring her down. “Put the hat on, Phil.”

“Daisy, I don’t think--”

“Hat.”

“Look, there’s a problem with--”

“ _Hat_.”

Tamping down her amusement and keeping up a stern face, Daisy watched Coulson sigh before putting the hat on his head. _Best. Day. Ever._

She wasn’t sure what he was worried about though, the hat seemed to fit fine, and only looked as silly as it was supposed to. And honestly, he kind of made a really good elf. “See? There’s nothing wrong with the hat,” she said, before trailing off as her eyes following his hands, which were still fidgeting.

But the hat no longer concealed what he was fidgeting in front of.

_Oh my god._

But...there were _shorts_. That wasn’t supposed to be a problem, it wasn’t like he was just wearing tights, or leggings. And she’d checked, the shorts were long, but--

_Yeah there’s no hiding that._

“Okay I can see your point from here. _I can see your point_.” Daisy winced. “You have a good point.” _What the fuck is wrong with me?_ “I mean-- I see where you’re coming from.” _FUCK_. Her brain was turning against her. She wasn’t even saying anything remotely dirty at this point but her mind was there and she could feel her face turning red. It was no use: all roads led back to his penis. Which she could basically see.

_And it’s not even at attention, just hanging out._

_Enough, Daisy._

Placing her hand like a shield over her eyes, Daisy took a moment.

“Okay, so just speaking logistically here, I can’t bring you to an orphanage like that.” She was just thinking of the children, that’s all. She wasn’t going to lie, for a second Daisy also thought about the older kids, and how that would have brightened her holiday as an adolescent for _reasons_ , but she was pretty sure you weren’t supposed to objectify your boss either.

“Oh god,” Phil muttered, and Daisy cursed the costume makers and their lack of forethought when it came to adult male elf genitalia. To be fair, it wasn’t like he looked ridiculous; it wasn’t porny or anything. Just...apparent.

Removing her hand from her eyes, Daisy steeled herself. “Don’t worry, I have the next size up in my room--”

“You _what_?”

Okay, she could have brought the larger costume with her earlier just in case. But he _did_ follow her without her knowledge while she was out doing a good deed so…

“So, I’m gonna just go, ah, grab that,” she said, pointing down the hall and backing away. _But first_...she thought, turning around one last time.

“What?” Coulson asked, noticing her hesitation.

“Just--” she looked down. Just once more. For posterity’s sake. Phil seemed to catch on, because his ears turned red. But he made no effort to cover it up, so she got her final look before basically running down the hall.

***

Phil had to admit, it was hard to truly feel silly once he walked into that house and saw all those kids. Elf outfit and all. Whether or not they believed in Santa (and he suspected a number of them didn’t, either because of age or a grasp of the world depressingly beyond their years,) everyone seemed excited and amused by their arrival.

Daisy had found a few organizations within driving distance, and this one was her fourth. Everyone gathered in the common room while the two of them read stories, Daisy letting some of the younger kids crawl up on her lap to “help.” It was painfully sweet, even with her deep Santa Voice. _Especially with her deep Santa voice_. Some of the older kids realized right away Santa was a girl, but her energy and that of the others was infectious, and Phil could see even the wariest of the bunch crack a smile occasionally.

They stayed for a couple hours, following up the stories with letting the kids sit on her lap and say what they wanted for Christmas if they so chose. It was perhaps the most heart wrenching moment of the night, and Phil wondered how Daisy had done it so many times. _‘I wouldn’t do it if they didn’t always insist,’_ she had told him on the ride over. _‘It can be...hard.’_

But she was good at it. She was _so good_ at it, listening to each one and somehow managing to tell them the right thing. Maybe it was because of her shared experience with these kids, or maybe it was because she was Daisy and she just understood people. But every time she looked them in the eye, said something from the heart, and it was almost like magic.

(Okay, Phil tended to get sappy around the holidays.)

Eventually it was time to go, the kids had to sleep and they had to drive back, so Phil handed off the little girl who’d fallen asleep in his lap and they said their goodbyes.

“Saw you getting a little choked up there,” Daisy teased as they walked down the front steps.

“I have no idea what you mean,” he retorted, and he could feel Daisy’s warm laugh in his bones. “That was--” He had no words. It was somehow fun, but also heartbreaking, and despite the global (and galactic) nature of their work, all of that seemed to shrink away when he was in that room.

“I know,” Daisy said as they approached the car. “It’s hard, but worth it. I just wish…” She trailed off, leaning against the side of the SUV.

“You could take them all home with you?” Phil finished, and Daisy nodded, sheepish.

“I mean, the worst thing for them would be getting involved in my work, but--”

“You like taking care of people,” Coulson said, shrugging. “It’s one of the many things you do well.” Daisy’s eyebrows shot up, and he couldn’t blame her. The tone had become fairly flirty. “Maybe in a few more years they’ll all become expert computer hackers and find you instead.”

Daisy’s lips curled into a smile. “That would be hard to explain,” she said, thoughtful. “Santa involved in SHIELD? That’s how conspiracy theories are born, ladies and gentlemen.”

“I like conspiracy theories,” Phil answered, leaning against the car and nudging her shoulder companionably. “Are you going to do this again?”

Daisy looked over to the house. “I don’t think I’ll find another one before Christmas,” she said, tilting her head. “But if I’m around I’d like to do it next year.”

With three little words, it was like she’d dumped a bucket of icy snow over his head. ‘ _If I’m around_.’

“Oh boy, what’s that face?” Daisy asked peering up at him from behind that ridiculous beard.

“You’ll be around,” Coulson told her tersely. Even if she meant “in the area,” or “not away on a mission,” he didn’t like the sound of that. Of an uncertain future. Of a future where she wasn’t there. With him.

Daisy placed a warm hand on his back. “Of course I will,” she said, understanding immediately because that’s what she did. “And you will too, and if you cut out the closed-off act I might even let you come with me again.”

Phil sighed. “I’m not trying to--” He gave up. Daisy didn’t need his excuses. “I’ll do better.”

“Maybe I’ll even let you be Santa,” she told him playfully, and Coulson turned to face her.

“Really?”  Beneath the fluffy hay and behind the fake beard, he could just see Daisy’s eyes, which even in the dark seemed to be laughing at him.

“No,” she said, and Phil couldn’t help but chuckle.

“This look does suit you,” he replied, placing a hand on the side of her face.

“Really?” Daisy sounded skeptical, but also hopeful? Tugging the beard down so he could see her face --her mouth, really-- Phil leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. Daisy dove into it immediately, wrapping her arms around his neck so quickly she knocked his hat to the ground. It landed with the light tinkling sound of bells, but they paid it no mind.

Pressing her against the SUV with his body, Phil deepened the kiss, trying to get one hand around her waist but being obstructed by the cushioning beneath her suit. He pulled away quickly, laughing.

“Sorry, sorry,” he said, it was just too much. Considering how _exposed_ he’d felt earlier (and while the new shorts were a visible improvement, he still felt...obvious,) it was absurd that Daisy was so well-covered.

“Oh boy,” Daisy muttered, but when he looked down at her face, Phil could see she was looking past him. Turning around, he spotted three small, mussed heads peering through one of the upstairs windows of the house. “ _That_ is going to be hard to explain,” she continued, discreetly pulling the beard back over her heavily-kissed face.

Quirking his lips into a smile, Phil shrugged. “I guess we _have to_ come back next year.”

 

 


End file.
